GILGIT: The residents of Gilgit city have been facing an acute shortage of electricity for the last four days.

According to the water and power department, the supply from the 18 megawatt Naltar power station remained suspended since Wednesday after a boulder hit the water channel of the facility.

It said maintenance work continued at the site and the power supply will remain suspended till October 2.

Routine life has been affected by the outages and the residents said they were facing over 20 hours of outages.

They blamed poorly designed power stations, outdated machinery, mismanagement and financial embezzlement in water and power department for the outrages in the region.

Nazakat Ali, a resident of Gilgit, told Dawn that routine life in the city came to a standstill because of the prolonged shortages.

Safdar Hussain, another resident, said electricity supply increased in the summer however often the supply was disrupted following floods and landsliding at the Naltar and other power stations.

“Students, housewives, professionals, people affiliated with online business are the most affected. All businesses, education, health, tourism activities remained disrupted,” he said.

Despite spending billions of rupees, successive governments failed to ensure uninterrupted power supply to Gilgit and other areas of Gilgit-Baltistan.

Nisar Ahmed, a local resident, said the powerhouses faced damages due to their poor designs and substandard work.

He said GB had potential to generate hydropower but the government failed to exploit the natural resources.

Secretary Water and Power Sanaullah told media that efforts were underway to restore power supply to the Gilgit city.

He said the boulder had caused significant damage to the water channel, adding steel frames will be installed to allow water to pass through and ensure the safety of the local settlements.

Published in Dawn, September 30th, 2024